Around Unova
by DarkDennil
Summary: Follow Rusty, an aspiring Pokémon Trainer on his adventures across Unova, where he meets both friend and foe on his way to become the greatest Trainer in Unova.
1. Pokémon Adventure

As the sun rose in the east on this spring morning, Rusty jumped out of bed in a hurry. He hadn't been sleeping for about an hour because he was so excited. Today was the day, the day when he would begin his very own Pokémon journey. He would finally get his Pokémon trainer's license and venture on an adventure across Unova.

He brushed his short, bushy brown hair out of his face and revealed his big blue eyes. Rusty was a native of Striaton City, located in southeastern Unova. It was a quiet town for the most part, occasionally there would appear some loud trainers who wanted to challenge the gym. The Striaton Gym Café was just outside Rusty's window, so he could always see when hopeful trainers entered the doors. And he could also see when they exited, sometimes they were sad and sometimes they were happy. Most of the time they were sad.

The gym leaders, Chili, Cress and Cilan were very strong trainers. They each specialized in different typed of Pokémon. Chili used Fire-type Pokémon, Cress used Water-type and Cilan used Grass-type. On top of being great Pokémon trainers, they also made a mean cup of tea. Cress got the cleanest and tastiest water, Chili heated it to just the right temperature and Cilan picked the best tea-leaves, which combined became the best tea in Unova. Rusty had been to the gym several times with his parents and had even got to see a gym battle while he was there. It had been amazing. He visited as often as he could, just to get another look at a gym battle. The three leaders was getting used to seeing him there and had gotten to know him very well.

The door to Rusty's room opened and his mom and dad stepped in. His mom carried a cake shaped like a Pokéball, with a candle on top. Written across the top side was: "Good Luck Rusty!" This was something that Rusty hadn't expected. He didn't think that he would get cake. Rusty sat down on the side of his bed, his mom doing the same after putting down the cake on the table. She hugged him and kissed him on the forehead.  
"I can't believe that my own son is getting his Trainer's License today!" she said.  
"Mom! It's no big deal! This happens to everybody. I'm no different." Rusty responded, his cheeks blushing.

Suddenly, a black shape darted through the open door and leapt onto Rusty's lap. Normally Rusty would have been startled by this, but he was so used to this that he didn't even blink. This was just his pet Purrloin that wanted to say good morning. He had gotten her about a year ago, from a lady who lived a few blocks down the street. Purrloin curled up in Rusty's lap and purred as he pet her. Ever since he had gotten her, she had been attached to him.

"We can't sit here all day. Dig in!" Rusty's dad exclaimed and handed Rusty a plate with a big slice of cake and a spoon. Rusty didn't have any objection, so he scooped up a piece of cake and tasted. It was delicious! The red top part of the Pokéball was made with strawberry jam, with a line of chocolate frosting as the ball divider and the bottom portion being just plain whipped cream. Purrloin got a slice for herself. Even with Purrloin getting a piece, they couldn't finish the whole cake.

Rusty changed from his pyjamas into his regular clothes. A pair of black pants that could be separated at the knee to make them into shorts, a white t-shirt and a blue hoodie. He also wore a black beret that he had gotten from his grandfather. Stepping out of his room and into the living room, carrying his bag over his shoulder, he picked up Purrloin from the floor.  
"Mom? Can I ask you something?" he asked a little shyly.  
"Of course you can! What is it?" his mom replied.  
"Well, I had been thinking that I would like to take Purrloin with me on my journey. Is that okay?" he asked with some hesitation.

To Rusty's surprise his mom smiled at the question.  
"Honey, if you hadn't asked, I would have suggested it. Purrloin wouldn't last a single day without you, and I know you wouldn't last a day without her. Am I right?" she asked as Rusty nodded in response. "So, yes. It is completely fine with me and your father that you take Purrloin with you on your journey." she continued.

Rusty held Purrloin in front of him and said: "Did you hear that Purrloin? You are coming with me on my journey!"  
"Purrloin-purr!" she said happily. Rusty knew that she would love traveling. Purrloin jumped out of Rusty's arms and sat next to him on the floor. "Purrloin!" she said, as if she was pushing him along to start the journey. Rusty smiled and turned to his parents. His mom had tears in her eyes. She pulled him towards her and hugged him. She burst into crying and didn't let him go from her grasp.  
"Mom, you can let me go now!" Rusty said, slightly muffled through his moms shoulder, which his face was pressed against. "It's okay! It's not like I'm going to be gone forever."

His mom let him go and wiped the tears from her eyes. She smiled and laughed a little.  
"I know, Honey. It's just a little overwhelming to realize that your son is so grown up and is leaving on a great adventure across the country." she said with a clearly audible lump in her throat. "Promise that you'll call as often as you can?"  
"I promise." Rusty said with a smile on his face and he hugged his mom once more.

Rusty had been told by Professor Juniper that he was supposed to meet her at the local Pokécenter. Professor Juniper was renowned Pokémon researcher that lived in Nuvema Town, a couple of kilometres south of Striaton. She provides all new trainers with their Pokédexes and told them of the rules about battling. Of course Rusty didn't need to hear them, because he had been studying everything that had to with Pokémon battling for two years, just so that he would be ready when the day came.

Rusty took a left outside the door to his apartment building. Purrloin kept a very short distance between herself and Rusty, as to not get herself lost in the busy street. Rusty could see the Pokécenter, as it was located just a few blocks down the road. The large red building grew closer and closer and Rusty became more and more eager by the minute. As soon as he walked in through those doors, he would take the first official steps on his journey. He looked at Purrloin and said:  
"Are you ready Purrloin?"  
"Purr-loin!" she said in response.

The doors slid open as he approched, and he stepped in. She stood at the front desk, talking to the nurse. She had light brown hair, rolled up in a bun on the top back of her head. She wore a white lab coat and a pair of red and white shoes. Since she was standing with her back turned to him, he couldn't tell what she was wearing under the lab coat, but he figured that she was wearing a tanktop and a short skirt. The style that she was known for sporting on most occasions. Rusty picked up Purrloin from the floor and walked towards Professor Juniper.

"Excuse me Professor? You had asked me to meet you here." Rusty said when he had reached the front desk. Professor Juniper turned around and looked at him with a smile.  
"Rusty! I've been expecting you for a while now. I hope nothing serious was keeping you?" she asked with a friendly tone in her voice.  
"No. My mom just wanted to say good bye properly, so I stayed a little longer for her sake." Rusty replied.  
"I see. That was very nice of you. Now, you came here to get your Pokédex from me, did you not?" she asked with a slight inquisitve look on her face. Rusty nodded with a smile on his face so big it made him glad that he had ears to keep his head from splitting in two.

Professor Juniper reached in her pocket and pulled out a little box. It had a print in the form of a Pokéball on the bottom portion and a small screen above it. She handed it to Rusty. He put Purrloin down on the counter before he accepted the Pokédex from Juniper.  
"Press the button on the Pokéball." Juniper said, and Rusty pressed the button. The back portion of the Pokédex slid up to reveal another screen. The screens lit up and showed a little message that said: "No current data avaliable."  
"Point the Pokédex at your Purrloin and press the little button on the side to start the scanning." Juniper said and pointed at Purrloin, who was sitting and grooming herself at the moment. Rusty did as he was told and pressed the button while he pointed the scanner at Purrloin. The screens of the Pokédex lit up, the top screen showing a picture of a Purrloin, and the bottom screen showing some information about Purrloin, like height and weight. A sort of robotic voice said: "Purrloin, the Devious Pokémon. Purrloin fools people into letting their guard down so it can steal their possesions. When angered, it uses its claws to fight back."

Rusty didn't think that his own Purrloin matched that description, but maybe that was how Purrloin acted in the wild. He pet Purrloin on the head, flipped the Pokédex shut and put it into the inner pocket in his hoodie. Juniper also handed him five standard Pokéballs, which he put in one of the compartments of his messenger bag.

"Rusty. What is your goal with this journey?" Juniper asked. Rusty looked at the professor with very confused look on his face.  
"I didn't know that you were supposed to have a goal with your journey." Rusty said. "I really haven't thought about it. I guess I'm just going to take the day as it comes, and see where that takes me."  
"Then I say that you have a splendid goal with your journey." Professor Juniper said with a slight chuckle in her throat.

Rusty thanked the professor, picked up Purrloin and started walking towards the door. On the way out, he noticed the shop to his left. He thought that it would be a good idea to buy some supplies for his trek between cities. He bought a few Potions and Pokéchow and continued out the door. Purrloin's eyes was darting from place to place, looking at all the new and exciting things around her.

The street outside was as busy as ever. People was running up and down the street, trying to get to their destinations as fast as possible. Rusty nearly got knocked down by a man that didn't see where he was going. He didn't say sorry. Rusty stared at him as he continued running down the street.  
"He could try to be a little nicer, right Purrloin?" Rusty asked his feline Pokémon.  
"PURRloin!" she answered.

"Now, where do you think that we should go Purrloin? We obviously need to train, if we are going to challenge the Striaton gym." Rusty said to Purrloin.  
"Purr-Purr!" Purrloin said and nodded.  
"I've heard that there are Pokémon in the Dreamyard. We should go check it out!" Rusty said excitedly.  
"Purrloin!" Purrloin said as she jumped out of his arms and sat next to him.

Going back the way he came, with Purrloin next to him, Rusty had set his sights on the Dreamyard. Located to the east of Striaton, the Dreamyard is ruins of an old abandoned research facility. Rusty had heard that Pokémon could be found there. He would battle some and maybe even capture one.

A little path in the northeast corner of the city led him to the Dreamyard. It was a grand sight to behold. A half-crumbled building, covered in moss and various plants. A high fence was surrounding the area, but it was so rusted and had big holes in it everywhere, so it didn't serve any purpose to have it. The vegitation around the area was wild, as it hadn't been tended to for years. It had been abandoned for as long as Rusty could remember and it sure looked like it.

Walking a bit into the area, Rusty looked around, and noticed that a bush was rustling. He approched it and suddenly something jumped out into the open. It was a small Pokémon. It was brown, had a long straight tail with a white tuft at the end and big eyes. Rusty picked up the Pokédex and turned it on.  
"Patrat, the Scout Pokémon. Using food stored in cheek pouches, they can keep watch for days. They use their tails to communicate with others."  
"Patrat, huh? I think I'll battle it! Purrloin, go get it!" Rusty said to Purrloin, who leapt into action.

Purrloin growled at the Patrat, who looked at her.  
"Purrloin, use your Scratch attack!" Purrloin extended her claws and lunged forward at the Patrat, swiping at it. The Patrat didn't have time to get out of the way, so it got hit across the face. It fell onto its back, but quickly got up again, preparing to counter attack. Revealing its long front teeth, its jumped at Purrloin and tried to bite her.  
"Purrloin, use Sand-Attack!" Rusty instructed Purrloin. She took some dirt with her paw and flung it at the Patrat's eyes. It hit home, and the Patrat missed Purrloin.  
"Use Fury Swipes!" Purrloin swiped at the Patrat several times. The Patrat tried to get up but was to weak to do it.

Rusty took a Pokéball from the pocket on his bag and pressed the button to enlargen it. He then braced himself and threw it at the Patrat. The Pokeball hit it, opened up and engulfed the Patrat in a red light. It dematerialized and was shot into the ball, which then closed itself. The Pokéball hit the ground and wobbled around for a moment, with the button glowing red, indicating that the Pokémon inside was struggling against capture. But after a moment, which felt like an eternity, the button returned to its original white color and remained still on the ground.

"Yes! I caught a Patrat! Well done Purrloin!" Rusty exclaimed while jumping up and down with joy.  
"Purrloin!" Purrloin said as she ran to Rusty, to be picked up and hugged. Rusty walked over and picked up the Pokéball. He looked at it and felt a deep sense of pride.  
"We'll have to wait to say hello to our new friend, Purrloin. It is still spent after the battle. I'll take it to a Pokécenter in a while." Rusty said while still looking at the Pokéball.

"Excuse me?" a person behind Rusty said.  
Rusty turned around to face a girl who hadn't been there before.  
"Hi!" Rusty said politely with a smile. "What can I help you with?"  
"Well," she said and blushed, "I saw you battling that Patrat and thought that you did a terrific job."  
"Uh, thanks." Rusty replied shyly while nervously scratching the back of his head. "It was no big deal."  
"I am walking around the city looking for trainers that show that they are nice to their Pokémon and at the same time that they are good at battling."  
"And you think that I showed those things?" Rusty asked a little confused.  
"Yes. You are a skilled trainer and it is clear to me that you love your Purrloin." the girl said. "That is why I am going to give you a Pokémon!"  
"What? Give me a Pokémon? What kind of Pokémon?" Rusty said with a mixture between confusion and excitement in his voice.  
"I have three Pokémon for you to chose from. First we have Pansage, the Grass Monkey Pokémon. Second, Pansear, the Fire Monkey Pokémon. Third and last, Panpour, the Water Monkey Pokémon."

Rusty was overwhelmed at the generous offer, just giving away a Pokémon was not something that was done very often. But which Pokémon was he supposed to choose? All three of the Pokémon sounded really strong and cool, but he didn't even know how they looked. That's when he remembered the Pokédex. He could just look them up in the Pokédex. So he got it up from his pocket and searched for them.

"Pansage, the Grass Monkey Pokémon. Pansage offers leaves on its head to Pokémon that have low energy. The leaves relieve stress."

"Pansear, the High Temp Pokémon. Pansear lives in caves near volcanoes. The temperature on the tuft on its head can reach 600 degrees when it's angry."

"Panpour, the Spray Pokémon. Panpour lived in forests long ago, but developed a body that makes it easy to live near water. It can store water in the tufts on its head."

The Pokédex entries didn't help much. He did get some closer looks at how the three Pokémon looked. They looked very similar, a cute little monkey with tufted fur atop its head. The things that set them apart were their color and their type. Pansage was a green Grass-type, Pansear was a red Fire-type and Panpor was a blue Water-type. Rusty could really not decide which he wanted.  
"Are you having some trouble choosing?" the girl asked him.  
"Yeah. They all seem really good and I would like to have them all, but I can't just choose one or the other."  
"Then let's make it like this: What kind of person are you?" she asked him and looked him in the eye.  
"What do you mean?" Rusty asked confused.  
"What I mean is: Are you passionate about your cause, are you calm and collected or are you wild and out of control?"

After thinking for a while he decided that he was more passionate then he was any of those other things.  
"Well, I'd say that I am a passionate person." Rusty said.  
"Then you have a very fiery spirit. Pansear is the Pokémon for you." she replied with a smile. "Here!" she handed him a Pokéball. Rusty accepted it from her and looked at it. It hit him that in the course of a half hour after beginning his journey, he had gotten two new Pokémon.  
"Yes! I got a Pansear!" he exclaimed while raising his fist up towards the sky in triumph. He opened the Pokéball and a little Pokémon materialized in front of him. The little red monkey jumped up and down and smiled.  
"Pansear-Pan!" it said.

Purrloin approached the Pansear, sniffed it and looked at it. She seemed like she liked it, because after inspecting it they started running around and played with eachother.  
"It seems as you made a good choice! Your Purrloin is getting along with Pansear." the girl said with a smile.  
"Yeah! Thank you so much for giving me this great Pokémon." Rusty said and bowed his head in respect.

After the girl had left and Rusty had called Pansear back into the Pokéball, him and Purrloin continued deeper into the Dreamyard.  
"Let's see if we find some more interesting Pokémon around here, eh Purrloin?" Rusty said to Purrloin, who was sitting on his shoulder.  
"Purrloin." she responded and nodded.

Rusty heard footsteps in front of him, but he couldn't see anybody. It sounded like, whoever it was, they were running. Then, out from the bushes, sprung a boy. He was wearing a green cap, a red jacket, yellow shirt and blue pants. He had short, bushy black hair and brown eyes.

The boy's foot caught a root and he fell face-first into the ground.  
"Oof!" he exclamied as his face hit the ground. He pushed himself up on his feet an instant after and smiled.  
"Are you okay?" Rusty asked with a tone of concern in his voice.  
"Yeah, it takes a lot more than that to stop me!" the boy said and chuckled as he scratched the back of his head. "My name is Luke." he continued and extended his hand. "Nice to meet you!"  
"I'm Rusty! Nice to meet you too!" Rusty said and shook Luke's hand.

Luke looked at Purrloin and smiled wider.  
"What a beautiful Purrloin you have. Are you a Pokémon trainer?" he asked.  
"Yeah, actually I am. Although I'm fairly new." Rusty answered with a nervous smile on his face.  
"Me too! Hey, wanna battle?" Luke asked.  
"Sure." Rusty replied with a surprised look on his face.

As both Luke and Rusty prepared themselves for the upcoming battle, Luke spoke:  
"Firstly we have to set some rules."  
"Rules?" Rusty asked confused.  
"Like how many Pokémon we are allowed to use and if we are should be able to switch Pokémon midbattle." Luke explained. "My suggestion is that we use two Pokémon each and that we can switch. What do you say?" he continued.  
"I think that that sound like a excellent set of rules. Let's battle!" Rusty said and picked up a Pokéball.

He threw the Pokéball into the air and said:  
"For my first Pokémon, I'll use Pansear!"  
"Pansear-Pan!" it said happily as it jumped up and down.  
"Pansear, huh? Ok, then I'll use Pidove!" Luke said and threw his own Pokéball into the air.

Out of the Pokéball materialized a small bird Pokémon. It was mostly gray, with shades ranging from lightgray on its belly, to darkgray on it wings. It spread its wings as it cried:  
"Kroo-Kroo!"

"Pidove, huh?" Rusty said as he flipped open his Pokédex:  
"Pidove, the Tiny Pigeon Pokémon. A Pidove flock's cooing can get extremely noisy. Pidove is not attracted to shiny objects."  
"OK! Sounds like an easy match! Pansear! Go! Use your Incinerate attack!"

Pansear opened its mouth, and a shot of fire sprang from it. As the little ball of fire sped towards the Pidove, Luke cried out:  
"Pidove! Dodge it!"  
Luke's Pidove flapped its wings and lifted from the ground and dodged the Incinerate attack by an inch.  
"Good Pidove, now use your Gust attack!"  
Pidove started flapping its wings really fast, until it created a whirlwind that sped towards Pansear. When Rusty had finally reacted, it was to late and Pansear couldn't dodge it. Pansear was knocked off his feet and landed a few feet away on his back.  
"Pansear, are you all right?" Rusty called to Pansear. Pansear jumped to his feet and nodded.  
"Alright! Let's do this!" Rusty said with rock-hard determination in his voice.

Rusty pointed at a nearby tree and said:  
"Pansear, climb that tree and jump towards Pidove!" Pansear did as he was told, and climbed the tree, ran out on one of the branches and jumped at the Pidove.  
"Now Pansear, use your Scratch attack!" Pansear lifted his arm and swung it at Luke's Pidove. Pidove was hit head on and tumbled towards the ground.  
"Pidove!" Luke cried out.  
"Now, before you land Pansear, use Incinerate!" Pansear took a deep breath and released a small ball of flame that hit Pidove on the back. Pidove hit the ground, unable to get up.  
"You did great, Pidove. Return!" Luke said and returned Pidove into its Pokéball.

"Yes! We did it Pansear!" Rusty cheered while Pansear jumped up and down.  
"Don't celebrate yet. I still have one more Pokémon left, remember?"  
"Right!" Rusty said.

Luke picked up another Pokéball from his pocket, enlarged it and threw it into the air.  
"I choose you, Munna!"

When the Pokéball opened a small, round and pink Pokémon materialized in front of him. It had flower patterns on its body and a pair of tiny pink eyes.  
"Munn-a!" it called out as it hovered a few feet above the ground.

Rusty instinctively reached for his Pokédex to check what this new Pokémon was.

"Munna, the Dream Eater Pokémon. Munna can eat the dreams of people and Pokémon alike, and then project those dreams by emitting Dream Mist from its body."

"Sounds like a real challange!" Rusty said and made his move. "Pansear! Use Incinerate!"  
"Munna! Use Yawn!" Luke said to Munna before Pansear had moved.

Munna let loose a yawn towards Pansear. In an instant Pansear's eyelids started to droop and he looked drowsy. He didn't fall asleep, but he moved very sluggish as if he was about to fall asleep. Remembering that he had been told to perform an attack, he fired a small ball of flame from his mouth. As the fireball flew towards Munna, it hovered a little to the side, missing it.

Suddenly Pansear fell to the ground, sunken in a deep sleep.  
"Now Munna! Use your Psywave!" Luke said with feelings of victory in his voice. Munna's eyes started to glow, and a purple wave of energy burst from the front of Munna's head. The wave crawled its way through the air to Pansear, finally hitting the soundly sleeping Pokémon head on. It was clear to Rusty that Pansear took heavy damage from that attack and that he wasn't going to wake up before he had taken to much damage to be able to win. Therefore, Rusty decided to withdraw Pansear from the battle.

"Pansear, return!" Rusty said and returned Pansear to his Pokéball. "Guess it's up to you now Purrloin, since the Patrat we caught earlier hasn't been to the Pokécenter yet." Purrloin nodded and lept into action.

"Purrloin! Use Scratch!" Rusty called out. Purrloin jumped up at Munna, extended its claws and scratched it across the face. Munna tumbled backwards from the blow but regained stablility quickly.  
"Munna! Use Psywave again!" Luke said.

Once again Munna's eyes glowed and that strange purple wave burst out from its head. The wave sped towards Purrloin, who got hit. But the wave didn't seem to affect Purrloin in the slightest. Luke looked confused.  
"Munna! Psywave again!" he said while sounding a little less confident. Munna fired another wave at Purrloin, who just sat there cleaning herself, and achieved the same result.  
"Don't you know, Luke?" Rusty asked. "Purrloin is a Dark-type Pokémon and Munna is using a Psychic-type attack. Psychic-attacks have no effect against Dark-types."

Luke realized his mistake, but seemed as determined as ever to win.  
"Munna!" Use Defense Curl!" he said.  
At once Munna curled up in a ball and got a faint glow around its body. Rusty didn't pay it any mind and continued with the battle.  
"Use Fury Swipes, Purrloin!"  
Purrloin extended her claws again and started scratching wildly at Munna. Munna was knocked around by each hit and it seemed like it didn't have much energy left. Purrloin landed one final blow and Munna cried out. It tumbled to the ground and couldn't manage to get up once it had hit the ground.

"Oh no!" Luke cried out. "Munna!" He picked up the Pokéball and returned Munna into it, giving it some much needed rest. "You did great, Munna." he said and put the Pokéball back into his pocket.

Rusty was in the middle of celebrating his first victory with Purrloin. Luke approached them and extended his hand to Rusty, who shook it.  
"Great battle, Rusty. It was really fun and intense." Luke said with a big smile on his face.  
"The same. You are a really good Trainer." Rusty said and scratched the back of his head while smiling. "By the way," he continued, "where are you headed next on your journey?"  
"Well, I still need to earn my gym badge here in Striaton first, but after that, I guess I'm headed to Nacrene City."  
"The same goes for me. Wanna tag along until our paths split?" Rusty asked.

Luke thought for a moment, and lit up in a bright smile.  
"Yeah, sure! That sounds like a fun idea!" he said and patted Rusty on the shoulder.  
"Great! But before we go challange the gym, maybe we need to check our Pokémon into the Pokécenter."  
"Yeah, you're right. It was a pretty rough battle."

So, both Rusty and Luke packed up all their things and walked side by side, back towards Striaton's Pokécenter.


	2. Triple Trouble

Rusty and Luke exited out from the clearing that led to the Dreamyard. The houses on the far edges of Striaton loomed closer and closer. As they stepped onto the streets, the streetlight turned on, indicating that night crept closer.

"Maybe we should call it a night and sleep at the Pokécenter tonight." Luke suggested.  
"Yeah, you're right. It is pretty late and the gym won't open again before 10 o'clock tomorrow." Luke answered.

Rusty's Purrloin sat on his shoulder and yawned.  
"Purrloin is getting pretty tired too, so I see no point in staying up." Rusty continued.

They turned around a corner and came onto Striaton main street. This was where both the gym and Pokécenter was located. The Pokécenter was on the far end of the street, just beside the Pokémon academy. They walked past several people, each one looking tired after a hard days work and each one turning at a diffrent street.

The Pokécenter was a few blocks away when a girl who looked to be a few years older than them approached them. She was wearing a red shirt, a black skirt and anklehigh boots. Her purple hair was bound in pigtails and she had a big smile on her face. Hot on her heels she had a small Pokémon. It was orange and black, with a yellow mark just above its snout. It had a curled tail with a little red ball at the tip. As usual Rusty pulled up his Pokédex to check this new Pokémon.

"Tepig, the Fire Pig Pokémon. Normally, fire shoots out of Tepig's snout, but it shoots out smoke instead when it is feeling ill."

"Excuse me. I'm new in town and I was wondering where the Pokécenter is." the girl said as she smiled and cocked her head to the side.  
Luke shoved Rusty out of the way so that he stood infront of the girl instead of Rusty.  
"Oh, we are going there ourselves, so you can just tag along." he said and scrathed the back of his head.  
"Great! We should hurry before it closes for the night." the girl said. Then she turned to Rusty, who was lying on the ground because of Luke's shove. Purrloin stood beside him and looked angrily at Luke.  
"Here, I'll help you up." she said and extended her hand to pull him to his legs. Rusty picked up Purrloin again and let her sit on his shoulder again.

"My name is Emily. What's yours?" she asked.  
"I'm Rusty and my excited friend here is Luke." Rusty said and pointed at Luke with his thumb.  
"Hi!" Luke said and waved his hand.  
"This is my Tepig." Emily said and picked up the Pokémon.  
"Tepig!" its said happily.

Purrloin leaned forward and sniffed at the air. She then sat up straight and looked at Tepig. When Emily put down Tepig again, Purrloin jumped down on the ground and ran to Tepig. She then sat next to it and rubbed her head at Tepig's head while purring.  
"It looks like Purrloin likes your Tepig." Rusty said and laughed.  
"Yeah, they became friend right away." Emily replied and smiled.

Luke, who was looking impatient, said:  
"Maybe we should get going. It's getting kinda late and the Pokécenter isn't going to keep open forever you know."

Since they had wasted so much time talking, they had to run the last bit, in order to make it in time. The resident nurse was just about to lock the doors and wind down the protective gate for the doors when they reached the Pokécenter.

"Wait! Let us in before you close!" Rusty yelled. The nurse looked at them and opened the door.  
"You're in luck. I was about to close for the night." she said and closed the door behind her. She proceeded to lock the doors and pressed the button to bring down the gates.

"How can I help you?" the nurse said when she had gone back behind the counter again.  
"We would like to check in our Pokémon." Luke said and put his Pokéballs on the counter.  
"Mine too!" Rusty said and put his Pokéballs along with Purrloin on the counter.

The nurse took their individual Pokéballs and put them into trays, one for Rusty and one for Luke. She carried Purrloin separately and put her along with the trays on a small wagon behind the counter.  
"They will be ready in the morning." she said and wheeled the wagon into the treatment room in the back. Purrloin gave Rusty a look of abandonment, but he reassured her by saying:  
"Don't worry Purrloin. She is going to make you feel better. You'll see me again before you know it!"

Purrloin looked a little calmer when the door closed behind the nurse, but Rusty still felt sorry for her. He turned around and went over to the sofas, where Luke and Emily had sat down. They were already talking when he sat down.  
"So Emily, where are you from?" Luke asked.  
"I'm fairly local. I was born and raised in Nuvema Town." she said. "How about you guys?" she continued.  
"I'm from right here in Striaton. In fact, my house in right down the street." Rusty said and pointed in the direction of his house.  
"Then I'm the only one here who isn't an Unovan. I'm from a region called Hoenn. My hometown is called Rustboro City." Luke said and leaned back in his seat.  
"Wow! I've never met someone who wasn't from Unova!" Emily said with wide-eye amazement. "What's Hoenn like?" she asked.

They sat for hours and talked about eachother until Luke nodded of several times, which made them decide to go to bed. Rusty laid down and fell asleep right away.

When Rusty woke up, Luke was still sleeping and Emily was nowhere to be found. It didn't seem like the Pokécenter had opened yet, so she had to be in the building. Rusty checked his clock and saw the it was half past eight. He stood up from the sofa he had been sleeping on and stretched himself. He instantly felt more alert and lively. He sat back down, just as Emily exited from the communications room. She walked towards the sofas with firm steps.  
"Sorry, but I just had to make a call." she said as she sat down.  
"That's OK. I just woke up, so in my point of view, you haven't been gone long. And he will never know you were gone." Rusty said and nodded in the now snoring Luke's direction.

The doors to the treatment room opened and the nurse stepped out into the waiting room.  
"Good morning!" she said with a smile. "I've just got to open the doors, then you can have your Pokémon back." she continued. She wind up the protective gates and unlocked the doors and went into the treatment room again. A few moments later she came back with the wagon, and on it she had the trays which contained their Pokéballs.

Purrloin sat next to the trays and when she saw Rusty, she leapt from the wagon, ran to Rusty and jumped into his arms.  
"Did you miss me that much Purrloin?" Rusty asked with a smile.  
"Purrloin!" she responded and curled up into a ball in his arms and started purring.

Rusty and Luke went up the counter to claim their Pokéballs.  
"The treatment went very smoothly, even though your Purrloin was very restless at first. She must love you very much." the nurse said when she handed over the trays to them.  
"She's my best friend." Rusty said and smiled.  
"It really shows that you know how to take care of your Pokémon. You are going to be a great Trainer." the nurse said.

"Have a pleasant day!" the nurse said to them as they exited the Pokécenter. Once out, Emily asked:  
"So, what's the plan? I've got nothing special to do, so maybe I can hang with you guys today?" she asked shyly.  
"We are going to challenge to the Striaton gym!" Luke said and looked excited.  
"Really? I was hoping to do that myself someday. But I don't think I'm strong enough to challange it yet." Emily said with a tone of sadness in her voice.  
"I don't think so." Luke said reassuringly. "If you've made it all the way here from Nuvema Town, you are more than ready to challenge the gym."  
"You think? Maybe I should give it a try. Then I'll come with you and challange the gym too!" she said with more confidence.

Walking down the street to the Gym, the three of them realized just how hungry they were. Even Purrloin's stomach was rumbling.  
"Maybe we should grab a bite to eat before we take on the gym challange." Rusty said and rubbed his belly.  
" Then we can kill two birds with one stone. Since the Gym is also a café, we can have a great breakfast and then face the gym leader with our stomachs full." Luke suggested.  
"What a great idea. There is only one problem. The Striaton Gym Café is a luxury café. We probably won't be able to afford it." Rusty said.  
"Don't worry. I've got a plan that just might work." Luke said with a devious smile on his face.

Rusty pulled open the door to the Striaton Gym and let his two friends in. Even this early in the day, there sat a great number of people at the tables. They made their way to the counter where a waitress as taking orders from customers.  
"Welcome to the Striaton Gym Café! How can I help you?" the waitress said as they approached.  
"Hi. We are three Pokémon Trainers who want to challange the Gym." Rusty said.  
"Certainly. I will notify the gym leaders. Just a moment." she said and walked into the kitchen in the back.

After a while, the waitress returned with three men in tow. These men where the Striaton gym leaders; Cilan, Chili and Cress. They were all wearing the same kind of clothes. A pair of black suitpants, a white shirt, a black vest with two gilded buttons. The only thing diffrent about their clothes was the color of their bowties, which matched their haircolor. Cilan was was wearing a green bowtie, Chili a red one and Cress a blue one. Their hairstyles were all diffrent.

Cilan's tea green hair was shorter than those of his brothers, it was slicked back, save for his bangs, which stood straight up. Chili's red hair was the wildest of the trio. It was incredibly bushy and almost reminded Rusty of a fire. Cress' blue hair was the longset. It was well-groomed covered half of his face as it hung down. It was also very flowing almost resembling actual water.

"We understand that you want to take the Gym Challange." Cress said.  
"Yes." was all Rusty could manage to answer.  
"All three of you? Well then, we better get going. Who wants to start first?" Chili said and rubbed his hands together.  
"Actually, we have a suggestion to make. We would like to battle all three at the same time. Against the three of you." Luke explained.  
"Well, uhm, that is a very, er, radical request." Cilan said. "But I, eh, guess it will be all right. Unless, ehm, my brothers have any, er, ojections." he continued and turned to his brothers.  
"I've nothing against." Chili said and crossed his arms over his chest.  
"Neither have I." Cress said.

They were led into a large hall in the back of the café. There was a battling court outlined on the floor. A judge was standing at the centerline, obviously always at the ready, as a challenger could come through the door during any part of the day.  
"This is our arena. Here you will try to earn your gym badge." Cress said. "By the way, what are your names?"  
" My name is Rusty of Striaton City. This is Purrloin." Rusty said and scratched Purrloin behind the ear.  
"I'm Emily of Nuvema Town!" Emily said and smiled.  
"And you can call me Luke and I'm from Rustboro City!" Luke said and made a pose.

The three gym leaders bowed and went to their end of the court. Cress made a little detour to go have a word with the judge. He was quickly finished and he too went to join his brothers.

Rusty, Luke and Emily took their own place at the opposite end of the court. The trainer's box, which was mapped out for one trainer at a time, was a little cramped, now that three trainers inhabited it. It seemed like Cilan, Chili and Cress were experiencing the same problems of space as they were.

When they had figured out how to stand, the judge raised his voice, so that it was heard all over the arena:  
"This is a triple match between Cilan, Chili and Cress, the gym leaders of the Striaton Gym and the challengers: Rusty of Striaton City, Emily of Nuvema Town and Luke of Rustboro City. Each trainer is permitted one Pokémon. The team to defeat all of the opposing team's Pokémon is the winner."

"I'll choose Panpour!" Cress said and threw a Pokéball into the air. A Panpour materialized on the field.  
"My Pokémon is Pansear!" Chili said and summoned his Pokémon.  
Pansage, I, uhm, choose you!" Cilan said and called forth his Pokémon.

As the three elemental monkyes stood in front of them, Rusty thought about which Pokémon to choose. Emily would most likely choose Tepig, so it would be redundant to use Pansear. Maybe he would use Purrloin again.

That's when he realized that he caught a Patrat yesterday, and he hadn't battled with it yet. He picked up Patrat's Pokéball and threw it into the air while saying:  
"Patrat! I choose you!"

The Patrat materialized before him and looked at him.  
"Patrat! This is our first battle together. Let's give it our all!"  
"Patrat." it said and turned around.

As Rusty had predicted, Emily had chosen her Tepig to battle. Luke had chosen his Munna for this battle.  
"Are you ready for this?" Rusty asked them. They both nodded. "Then let's go!"

"Begin!" the judge shouted.

"Pansear! Use Scratch on Patrat!" Chili shouted as soon as the match begun. Pansear ran up to Patrat and swiped at it.  
"Patrat! Dodge it!" Rusty said, and just in time for Patrat to respond and dodge.  
"Now it's my turn! Munna use Yawn on Panpour!" Luke called out to his Munna. Munna yawned at Panpour, which couldn't help but look at it. It started looking drowsy right away.

"Tepig! Use Ember on Pansage!" Emily said. Tepig took a deep breath and when it exhaled, a flurry of tiny balls of fire shot out from its mouth, covering Pansage.  
"Pansage!" Cilan called out. He looked very distraught that he hadn't reacted more quickly. But he soon snapped out of it and said: "Pansage! Respond with Lick!" Pansage ran up to Tepig and licked it in the middle of the face. Tepig started shivering and laid down on the floor.  
"Tepig!" Emily cried out.

Tepig struggled to get up. It put it all into getting back on its feet. Emily was cheering it on from the box:  
"Go Tepig! Get up! You can do it, I know you can!" With one last effort, Tepig managed to stand up again.  
"Good boy, Tepig!" Emily shouted happily. "Now, use Ember!" Once again Tepig took a deep breath and shot out small balls of flame, covering Pansage. Pansage cried out and fell onto its back, unable to get up.

"Pansage is unable to get up. It is no longer allowed to continue fighting." the judge said.  
Cilan called back his Pansage, pocketed the Pokéball and went and stood on the sidelines until the match would finish.

Panpour fell asleep from the Yawn-attack from earlier. Luke took the opportunity and had Munna go in for the attack.  
"Munna! Use your Psywave-attack!" he shouted. The purple wave crept towards the unsuspecting Panpour. It hit home and Panpour was knocked back. It still stood up, sleeping.  
"Good one, Munna! Use Psywave again!" Luke said. Once more the purple wave crept closer its target. Just before it hit, Panpour opened its eyes, waking up.  
"Panpour!" it cried, frightened, realizing that it didn't have time to get out of the way.

Panpour was knocked further back, onto its back. It tried to push itself up, but didn't have enough strength.  
"Panpour is unable to continue. It is no longer allowed to continue fighting." the judge said.

Cress called back Panpour and joined his brother at the sidelines.

Now only Pansear remained. Chili looked really detemined about winning, even if he was outnumbered. In a fit of grandeur Rusty thought that he could handle Pansear on his own.  
"Withdraw your Pokémon." he said to Luke and Emily.  
"What? Why?" Emily hissed at him.  
"Just do it! I can take him." Rusty said.  
"I hope you know what you are doing. If you lose, we have to do this all over again." Luke said and picked up his Pokéball and called back Munna. Emily did the same with Tepig.

"Tepig and Munna have been called back. They are not allowed to be called back into the match." the judge said.

"I thought that we would do this one on one, Chili." Rusty shouted across the arena.  
"Suit yourself. You would've had a bigger shot if your friends had kept their Pokémon in battle. My Pansear is pretty strong." Chili shouted back.  
"Told you so!" Emily growled at Rusty. "If you lose, I'll make you sorry." Rusty was a little scared of Emily now, but he was sure that he could win. Patrat had showed it was strong-willed and persistent during this battle.

"Pansear! Use Incinerate!" Chili shouted. Pansear started to glow. Rusty was surprised, since his Pansear didn't started to glow whenever it used Incinerate. The glowing died down and Pansear shot a big fireball at Patrat.  
"Patrat! Throw yourself on the ground." Rusty shouted. Patrat didn't have to be told twice, as it threw itself just in time for the fireball not to hit it.

When the fireball had passed, Patrat jumped to it's feet and awaited orders.  
"Patrat! Bite!" Rusty said. Patrat ran as fast as it could to Pansear and sunk its teeth into Pansear's arm. Pansear cried out and wretched its arm free.  
"Pansear! Use Scratch!" Chili said. Pansear raised its arm to deliver the blow.  
"Patrat! Use Detect!" Rusty shouted before Pansear could bring its arm down. Patrat closed its eyes and cocked its ears. When Pansear brought its arm down, Patrat stepped out of the way just in time. Pansear was caught of balance and fell face-first on the floor.

Patrat retreated while Pansear got up on its feet again. Now Pansear was looking as determined as its trainer.  
"Patrat! Use Bide!" Rusty called out. Patrat sat down on the floor where it had stood and closed its eyes.  
"Now is our chance Pansear! Hit it with Incinerate." Chili said.  
"Pansear!" it said determinedly. Once again, Pansear started to glow and when the glow had died away, the great fireball shot towards Patrat. It hit Patrat head on, but Patrat didn't show any signs of damage.  
"Now, use Scratch!" Chili said. Pansear swung his arm at Patrat. Again, Patrat didn't even flinch when it was hit.  
"Scratch again Pansear!" Chili shouted. The same thing happened again. Pansear swung and Patrat didn't move a muscle.

"You've got to do something! You're going to lose if you don't make a move." Emily said with anxiety in her voice.  
"Just wait." Rusty said. "Watch."

Patrat opened its eyes and shot forward from its sitting position, getting to Pansear in an instant. Before Pansear or Chili could react, Patrat punched Pansear. The force of the punch was so massive, that it sent Pansear flying across the room. When it landed, Pansear was out cold.  
"Pansear can no longer fight. The winning team is: Rusty, Luke and Emily! Congratulations!" the judge said and pointed to the winners.

Emily was jumping for joy.  
"You did it! You did it!" she screamed and threw her arms around Rusty.  
"I honestly thought that you had lost your mind when you told us to withdraw, but you really came through." Luke said and patted Rusty on the shoulder.  
"It was a close call but my plan worked out in the end." Rusty said. "I thought that if I weakened Pansear first, it would give me an opportunity to use Bide."  
"What was that attack?" Emily asked him.  
"Bide lets a Pokémon endure attacks and then turns the damage it had taken back at the attacker twofold. It is a gamble to use, but if it succeeds, it is a potential game-ender." Rusty explained. "I knew that Patrat wouldn't let itself be defeated so easily. So using Bide was a safe bet."

Patrat had run up to Rusty, who picked it.  
"You did really well Patrat! You deserve some rest." Rusty said and sent Patrat back into its Pokéball.

The three gym leaders approached them. Cress was carrying a small box in his hands.  
"You did really well, all three of you. I'm very impressed." Cress said.  
"You are a very skilled Trainer, Rusty. Not a lot of people have been able to defeat my Pansear so easily." Chili said and smiled.  
"I am, ehm, very honored to have, er, battled you." Cilan said.

Cress held up the box.  
"You have more than earned these." he said and opened the box. In the box lay three identical pins. They where shaped like a very angular bowtie. The top part was ocean blue, the middle was fire red and the bottom was tea green. These were official Pokémon League Gym Badges.  
"Please accept these Trio Badges." Cress said as he handed them one each.

Rusty looked at the badge, unable to yet comprehend what had happened. He had gotten his first gym badge.  
"Yes! I got the Trio Badge!" he shouted and held the badge aloft for all to see. He turned to his fellow trainers and celebrated for a little while. He then remembered about Luke's plan.  
"Luke, don't you have something to ask the gym leaders?" he asked.  
"Oh yeah! I almost forgot." Luke said and turned to the brothers. "We were thinking that we don't have much money. And we haven't eaten today. So we were wondering, since we beat you, that you maybe you could treat us to breakfast?" Luke was a little uncomfortable about asking this to the gym leaders, but it had been his idea, so he couldn't just bail out now.

The brothers just gave eachother a look and Chili said:  
"We would be delighted to treat you to breakfast."  
"Just go out that door, sit down and we will be around shortly to take your orders." Cress said and pointed at the door in which they had entered.

The customer count had increased since they had entered. They almost had a hard time finding a seat. after a while of searching, they found a table for three. They flipped through the menu to see if they had something good to eat.

Cilan approached them after a while. He was holding a pen and a small note pad.  
"What will you be having today?" he asked them, while having pen and paper at the ready.  
"I'll have the vanilla tea and the broccolipie, please." Emily started.  
"I will have some lemon tea and two ovenbaked sandwiches." Luke said.  
"I'll go with the liquorice tea and a minced meat pie." Rusty ended.  
"Excellent choices. Would you, uhm, like something for your, er, Pokémon?" Cilan asked.  
"Yes please!" Rusty said and smiled.

Cilan returned after a while, with all the food on one tray and the tea on another. He even had foodbowls full of Pokéchow for their Pokémon to eat.

After finishing the incredibly delicious meal, they thanked the gym leaders and exited the café. Rusty was regarding the badge as they walked down the steps to the street.  
"What's the plan now?" Emily asked.  
"I guess we continue to the next town. That's Nacrene City and there is a Gym there. But it's a long way to get there, so we better get going right away." Rusty answered.

As they walked down the street to the far edge of town that led to the route to Nacrene City, they passed many people, as usual. However, there was one perticular person that caught Rusty's eye. He was wearing what appeared to be a knight's armor. On his chest there was an emblem resembling a shield, black on one half and white on the other. There was a blue lightning bolt stretching horizontally over the shield. Over the lightning bolt, was a capital P in the same blue color as the lightning bolt.

The knight was running in the same direction as them. Rusty thought that he looked really peculiar and wanted to investigate further. He urged Luke and Emily to follow him. They followed the knight onto Route 3; the route to Nacrene City.


End file.
